Chapter 33: Twenty-Year-Old Meng Weiyu

Shen Zhoudu’s original plan was to leave after lunch. In the end, because the dining table had been overturned, the lady of the house, Fang Yingyao, showed an apologetic expression and asked Shen Zhoudu and Meng Weiyu to stay for the day so she could properly make it up to them. Then she hurriedly told someone to make something for them to eat first.

Meng Weiyu, who was actually already full: “…”

After deciding to come here to meet the family, Shen Zhoudu had not planned on eating anything, so the table being overturned did not affect him much. He originally wanted to decline the invitation to stay, but Fang Yingyao looked at him with a face full of expectation, and the words of refusal would not come out.

Back when Shen Zhoudu and Meng Weiyu got married, they encountered many people’s opposition, while Fang Yingyao had always stood on their side and supported them.

Also… that pitiful expression was exactly the same as Meng Weiyu’s.

Shen Zhoudu had not yet found a way to refuse that kind of expression, so in the end, he fell into a situation where he and Fang Yingyao stared at each other.

“It’s wonderful that you’re willing to stay. I’ll have Xiao Cai tidy up the room.” Fang Yingyao beamed. “Just stay in Xiao Yu’s old room. The furnishings inside are still the same.”

Shen Zhoudu watched Fang Yingyao happily go find someone to clean the room, then helplessly looked at Yan Xiangxiang holding Meng Weiyu’s hand and pretending to be pitiful as she persuaded him to divorce.

“I learned from what happened with your mother that if people don’t get along, they should divorce. Dragging it out not only brings no happiness, it also annoys me to watch.”

“You and Little Shen are both still young. Getting married and divorced isn’t a big deal.”

“It’s not that I hope your relationship breaks apart, but I truly have seen through it.”

Meng Weiyu sat to the side, forcing a smile. He understood his family’s nature too well. Every single one of them only wanted others to act according to their own wishes. Every one of them was willful, yet this whole family was also full of people who were eloquent. In this kind of situation, only the person who found the point of attack first would win.

Unfortunately, Meng Weiyu had no way to fight back. He listened absentmindedly to Yan Xiangxiang’s words while quietly sweeping his gaze toward Shen Zhoudu.

On Fang Yingyao’s side, after hearing Yan Xiangxiang’s words, she shook her head helplessly and simply asked Shen Zhoudu, “Do you want me to take you to Xiao Yu’s room to rest?”

“Sure.” Shen Zhoudu agreed readily.

Shen Zhoudu followed Fang Yingyao away, while Yan Xiangxiang continued chatting with Meng Weiyu.

“That’s enough.” Meng Yichuan sat on the sofa and opened his newspaper. He did not name anyone specifically, but it was obvious his words were aimed at Yan Xiangxiang.

“Hey.” Yan Xiangxiang instantly put away her tears and looked at Meng Yichuan with a smile that was not quite a smile. “I should be the one saying that, right? Who is the one who should know when enough is enough? What illness are you having today? Could it be that you’re really old now and your brain has gone bad?”

“I agreed to Qinggu and Xiao Yu’s divorce because they never loved each other from beginning to end. They were both cowardly people with no sense of responsibility and did too many wrong things.” Meng Yichuan irritably shook the newspaper in his hands. “The thing I regret most is that I didn’t notice they were living such failed lives. I was also a failure. I actually didn’t notice that it was bad enough that they treated themselves and each other poorly, but they also treated their own child badly. They ignored Xiao Yu and let him grow up in a terrible family.”

By the time they discovered Meng Weiyu, who had grown up in an environment of emotional neglect, everything was already too late.

Meng Weiyu had already become used to a space without kindness. The way he reacted to their care was also so shallow and incomprehending.

They had wanted very much to save him, but everything was already too late.

“At my age, I knew homosexuality existed, but I couldn’t understand it, so I never thought Xiao Yu would fall in love with a man, and one of a type I disliked at that.” Meng Yichuan frankly admitted his narrow-mindedness. “I didn’t approve. I tried to stop it. But I’m not truly blind. I could see that Xiao Zhou genuinely liked Xiao Yu, and Xiao Yu also changed. He looked very happy. That was why I compromised. I don’t dare say that not divorcing is definitely the correct choice, because Qinggu and Xiao Yu deserved to separate, but Xiao Yu and Xiao Zhou—do they truly not need to think about it seriously?”

Meng Yichuan was taciturn, stubborn, and obstinate by nature. For him to say something like this clearly meant he had set aside his pride and dignity.

Yan Xiangxiang fell silent for a moment.

“Let Xiao Yu think about it properly. Don’t talk too much.” Meng Yichuan, relying on the fact that everyone was in his house right now, spoke a little louder.

“Of course I won’t force Xiao Yu to make a choice.” Yan Xiangxiang stroked Meng Weiyu’s hair and glanced sideways at the former in-law she had known for many years. “But don’t forget, on the Shen family’s side—ha, I mean those annoying things from Little Shen’s family—what attitude did they have at the beginning?”

One of the reasons Yan Xiangxiang had opposed the two of them being together was that the Shen family side had not blessed the relationship.

What were those people, daring to make irresponsible remarks about her grandson?

“Naturally, I was angry.” Meng Yichuan had always had a fiery temper. At the time, he had even wanted to overturn the table and leave.

“But that has nothing to do with Little Shen.” Nan Jin, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke. “Little Shen did very well.”

“Hmph, who can choose not to have troublesome family members?” Meng Yichuan glanced sideways at Yan Xiangxiang. Some things did not need to be said out loud.

Yan Xiangxiang looked at Meng Yichuan and returned a cold smile.

“Seeing that Grandpa and Grandmother are still this healthy makes me feel relieved.” Meng Weiyu leaned back against the sofa in comfort.

Everyone present looked at him.

“After I woke up and discovered I had lost ten years’ worth of memories, I kept worrying about all of you.” Meng Weiyu smiled and said, “It looks like not only have you not changed much, you’re also still full of vigor.”

Hearing this, Yan Xiangxiang immediately put aside the little schemes in her heart. Without saying a word, she turned and hugged her grandson.

Just as Meng Yichuan had said, why had they discovered it so slowly? Why had they allowed Meng Weiyu to grow up in such a twisted family?

The atmosphere of their reminiscing gradually became warm. Therefore, when they had dinner, no one overturned the table in the end, although the arguing continued.

After dinner, Shen Zhoudu, who was the punching bag visiting someone else’s house, and Fang Yingyao placed forks onto the fruit platter together. Fang Yingyao had purely been unable to stand the others in the house discussing Shen Zhoudu and Meng Weiyu’s marriage problems in front of Shen Zhoudu, so she repeatedly sent him away.

After all, out of sight, out of mind.

Fang Yingyao found it funny just looking at Shen Zhoudu’s side profile as he wore a serious expression and inserted forks into the fruit one by one.

“Hm?” Hearing laughter, Shen Zhoudu belatedly turned his head and looked at Grandma in confusion as she suddenly laughed.

Fang Yingyao originally wanted to chat with him, but her eyes shifted and saw someone walking over from the side. She tactfully said, “Bring the fruit over later. I’ll go call Xiao Cai to make tea.”

“Okay.” Shen Zhoudu felt this was a small matter.

After Fang Yingyao left, footsteps came from the other side. Shen Zhoudu looked over and saw Meng Weiyu eating snacks, taking large strides toward him without a care.

Since arriving here, Shen Zhoudu had basically had no chance to communicate with him, so he looked at Meng Weiyu with a resentful gaze. Then, as if venting anger, he forcefully stabbed the fork in his hand into a piece of fruit. The fork successfully pierced through the fruit’s flesh and struck the cold plate.

“Why are you throwing a tantrum?” Meng Weiyu walked over lightly.

“Where am I throwing a tantrum?” Shen Zhoudu denied it to the end.

If Meng Weiyu did not know how to read expressions, he would have believed his nonsense. Why did this person always keep everything bottled up without saying anything?

“My mother’s side of the family always speaks with hidden meanings, while my father’s side is unreasonable by bloodline.” Meng Weiyu sighed as he walked.

Shen Zhoudu turned his head and stared at his face.

“So I inherited all their shortcomings. My personality is unreasonable, and when I speak, I speak with hidden meanings.” Meng Weiyu arrived beside him.

Shen Zhoudu was angered into laughter. He casually speared a piece of fruit and stuffed it into Meng Weiyu’s mouth.

Meng Weiyu opened his mouth and ate it.

“Why did you agree to stay tonight?” Shen Zhoudu sighed.

“Then why didn’t you refuse?” The two of them had clearly heard the request for them to stay at the same time.

“The impression I left on them in the first place wasn’t that good. How would I dare to speak?” Shen Zhoudu conveyed his feelings with a resentful look.

“Oh, really? I thought you didn’t refuse because you liked it here.” Meng Weiyu did not take this matter to heart.

Shen Zhoudu narrowed his eyes. In the end, he chose to turn his head and stop arguing with him over this.

“Are you angry?” Meng Weiyu asked again.

“As long as you’re having fun here.” If Meng Weiyu was a mixture of unreasonable and sarcastic, then Shen Zhoudu was simply a pure tank of sarcasm gas.

Meng Weiyu was unaffected. He picked up a fork, put fruit into his mouth, and spoke while eating. “How can you tell I’m having fun here?”

“Here, there are people who support you divorcing.” Shen Zhoudu said coldly.

Hearing this, Meng Weiyu frowned. Then he threw the fork in his hand back onto the plate, making a crisp sound.

The “clang” immediately drew the attention of the others in the room.

Shen Zhoudu looked at him.

“Oh my.” Fang Yingyao walked back and happened to witness this stalemate.

After that, the two of them did not communicate. Shen Zhoudu carried the fruit platter and strode toward the living room. He walked with a murderous aura, making Meng Yichuan and Yan Xiangxiang, who had been arguing, not dare to breathe loudly.

“Grandpa, Grandmother, Grandpa Nan, please have some fruit.” Shen Zhoudu’s face was expressionless, no different from usual, but everyone could feel the killing intent radiating from him. “I just received a message from my assistant. They hope I can have a video meeting with a business partner, so I have to return to the room. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. For young people, work is the most important.” While Meng Yichuan and Yan Xiangxiang were stunned, Nan Jin, who had previously had little presence, naturally picked up Shen Zhoudu’s words. “We old people can chat by ourselves. Go and busy yourself.”

Shen Zhoudu nodded at Nan Jin and apologized again before turning and leaving.

After Shen Zhoudu left, everyone turned their heads in unison to look at Meng Weiyu.

“When I wanted to marry this gloomy gourd back then, why didn’t any of you stand up and stop me?” Meng Weiyu found fault for no reason.

“We did, we did. We all stood up.” Meng Yichuan nervously grabbed his newspaper tightly and quickly explained how determinedly he had opposed their marriage at the time.

“Then why didn’t you succeed?” Meng Weiyu continued to be angry.

“Because we didn’t speak as loudly as you.” Yan Xiangxiang stated the key problem from back then, as well as pointed out Meng Weiyu’s current state.

Meng Weiyu wanted to calm down, but Shen Zhoudu’s attitude was like a lit match, igniting his dry bundle of gunpowder all at once.

“I hate getting along with this kind of person the most. If you don’t ask, he won’t say anything. Even if you ask, he still says nothing. Do I need mind-reading powers to deal with him?” Meng Weiyu slammed the snack bag in his hand onto the table and clenched his fist fiercely.

Meng Yichuan suddenly gave Yan Xiangxiang a look.

“What?” Yan Xiangxiang did not dare speak too loudly.

“Now that they’re having a conflict, this is a good time to persuade him to divorce.” Meng Yichuan kindly sent his former in-law to her death.

The corner of Yan Xiangxiang’s mouth twitched. She would not jump into such an obvious trap.

“Oh my.” Fang Yingyao walked over with a smile.

“You’re still laughing…” Sometimes Yan Xiangxiang really admired Fang Yingyao. Just how thick were this woman’s nerves that she could laugh in such a terrifying atmosphere?

“It’s fun when young couples quarrel.”

Fang Yingyao said something that made Yan Xiangxiang’s heart tremble. She could not help producing a thought: perhaps this woman was actually the most terrifying person in this house.

“Xiao Yu wants mind-reading powers. Is it only because he wants to deal with Xiao Zhou alone?” Fang Yingyao heard the key point in Meng Weiyu’s words.

Meng Weiyu froze.

“Is that showing off affection?” Nan Jin followed up with modern young people’s terms.

“Probably.” Fang Yingyao and Nan Jin echoed each other and defused the crisis.

After that, only Meng Weiyu was left sitting on the sofa, wailing as he held his head, trying to use a brain that did not understand romance to think through his true self.

“After all, Xiao Yu is only seventeen now.” Nan Jin was understanding. “When I was seventeen, I couldn’t figure out whether I liked someone or not at all.”

“Haha.” Fang Yingyao laughed. Although the two old people on the other side spent all day wishing they could never see each other again until death, the two of them had no barriers at all. “You were too slow. When I was seventeen, I already knew what kind of person I liked.”

“Wasn’t I your first love?” Meng Yichuan was so frightened by his wife’s sudden honesty that he opened his mouth. “When you were seventeen, we hadn’t even met yet.”

Hearing this, Fang Yingyao kept the smile on her face. Then she picked up the fruit platter, sat beside her troubled grandson, ignored her husband, and said, “Xiao Yu, don’t be upset. Have some fruit. Xiao Zhou won’t really sulk with you.”

“Right now, I’m the one sulking with him.” Meng Weiyu knew that if he had not started it, Shen Zhoudu would not have directly attacked him. And the reason he did that was because there was a thought in his subconscious urging him to argue with Shen Zhoudu.

Only when he was pushed to the extreme would Shen Zhoudu tear apart that mask of not caring about anything and reveal everything to him, cutting open his false shell and exposing the real him.

“Young people…” Fang Yingyao taught him a good way to make up. “Isn’t a kiss enough?”

Meng Weiyu: “…”

He was successfully blasted into a blank mind by Fang Yingyao’s words.

“Ahem, Yingyao, Xiao Yu’s mental age is only seventeen right now. Don’t teach the child bad things.” Meng Yichuan felt that if he did not speak up, Fang Yingyao was going to teach Meng Weiyu even more terrible things.

“His body is mature, but his mind is childish.” Fang Yingyao pointed out the biggest problem Meng Weiyu was currently facing.

All his current dilemmas came from this. Twenty-seven-year-old Meng Weiyu would only encounter problems a twenty-seven-year-old him would encounter: work, getting along with family, and his relationship with Shen Zhoudu. Perhaps his twenty-seven-year-old self would not have such ridiculous awkwardness with Shen Zhoudu, and could easily guess Shen Zhoudu’s thoughts based on every move he made, knowing why he kept everything bottled up inside.

But the seventeen-year-old Meng Weiyu could not.

“As expected, I should just divorce.” Meng Weiyu lay on the sofa in self-abandonment, trying to use escapism to solve his own irritation and confusion.

“You know, Grandmother has always supported you.” Seeing the atmosphere soften, Yan Xiangxiang boldly spoke again.

Meng Weiyu lay on the sofa, his light hair moving slightly with the wind from the air conditioner. His beautiful face was filled with confusion.

No matter what, he had at least calmed down.

Meng Weiyu watched television with the elders at home and chatted for a while. Old people needed to sleep early, so they did not stay with Meng Weiyu for too long and returned to their rooms with their respective spouses.

“Xiao Yu will still stay in his old room. I had someone clean it.” Fang Yingyao smiled as she told him this.

This place was basically a manor. There were several villas, and the place Meng Weiyu used to live in was the villa at the back.

“Hurry over. I glanced at the weather outside just now, and it feels like it’s going to rain.” Recently, it was the rainy season, so heavy rain could fall unexpectedly. The distance from here to the building at the back was not far, but southern rain always came suddenly and left people at a loss. If it started raining while someone was walking on the road, in just a dozen seconds they could become a miserable drowned chicken.

Meng Weiyu nodded casually, not taking the matter to heart.

After greeting the elders, each of them returned to their rooms.

Meng Weiyu knew Shen Zhoudu must be in that villa. Thinking of the stiff atmosphere between the two of them earlier, his steps on the floor grew slower and slower. He wished he could walk this road for an entire day and night to avoid meeting Shen Zhoudu.

Because he dragged his feet, the dark clouds gathered in the sky could not hold back anymore. Heavy rain instantly came pouring down.

“Fuck.” Meng Weiyu was drenched and sped up, running toward the villa.

The villa was brightly lit, and the building blocked the heavy rain’s attack on him.

Meng Weiyu’s shoes stepped on the stairs, leaving clear rainwater behind.

“Hurry back to the room and shower.” After being soaked by the rain, Meng Weiyu instead showed an excited expression. He quickly went up the stairs to the familiar room on the second floor, twisted the door handle, and the door was pushed open at once.

The person standing inside happened to hear the sound of the door opening, and his body suddenly froze.

“What are you doing?” Meng Weiyu was so startled by the person in the room that he took a step back.

Shen Zhoudu had clearly just finished showering. He was wearing only a pair of shorts, his hair dripping wet, one hand raised with a towel casually drying his hair. Without glasses, his face did not hide the surprise he felt upon seeing Meng Weiyu.

“I thought you would sleep in another room.” Shen Zhoudu picked up the short-sleeved shirt placed on the bed and put it on.

“This is my room. If one person has to leave, it shouldn’t be me.” Meng Weiyu did not know why he had such a misunderstanding.

“Okay.” Shen Zhoudu picked up the phone on the table, intending to leave.

Hearing this, Meng Weiyu took a large step into the room, then swung his hand and closed the door.

After Shen Zhoudu took his phone, he had already begun walking toward the door. Once Meng Weiyu closed the door, his body happened to stop right in front of Meng Weiyu.

“Do you need something else?” Shen Zhoudu looked at him.

“I get angry just looking at you.” Meng Weiyu kicked the floor with his wet shoe and raised his head to look directly at Shen Zhoudu.

“I know. That’s why I’m leaving.” Shen Zhoudu continued walking toward the door.

“Bang!”

Meng Weiyu kicked the door, pressing the door panel shut and giving Shen Zhoudu no chance to open it.

“What do you mean?” Shen Zhoudu’s light brown hair, dotted with water droplets, trembled, and the droplets instantly slid down his cheeks.

“I should be asking you what you mean.” Meng Weiyu had had enough of his mouth that could not be pried open. “If you didn’t want to come here, you should have told me from the start.”

He could tell that Shen Zhoudu did not want to come here and was unhappy here too. Since that was the case, why had he agreed to come with him?

“I didn’t not want to come here.” Shen Zhoudu told the truth. “And I also won’t stop you from coming here. You were in a car accident before, and Grandpa, Grandma, Grandfather, and Grandmother were afraid of disturbing your rest, so they didn’t dare come directly. Now that there’s nothing wrong with your body, it’s only natural that you should meet them.”

“Shen Zhoudu.” Meng Weiyu’s voice was gloomy. His eerie gaze looked at him. “Do you think I’m some idiot?”

Shen Zhoudu’s mature and steady facade was pierced through. In an instant, he gritted his teeth, gave up entirely, and pulled the towel from his head, throwing it hard onto the floor.

Meng Weiyu looked at him calmly.

Calmly? Not exactly.

Right now, he was full of energy. His eyes, usually calm like ink, were instantly ignited.

He just liked seeing Shen Zhoudu unable to maintain his rational appearance, losing the logical ability he was so proud of, and showing a disheveled truth in front of Meng Weiyu.

“I didn’t lie. I have never minded you meeting your family, and I’ve also worked hard to get along well with them!” Shen Zhoudu strode toward Meng Weiyu. The shadow of his body blocked Meng Weiyu’s view of the bright light. He grabbed Meng Weiyu’s shoulders forcefully and roared in a collapsing voice, “But why did you respond to Grandmother’s words? You clearly know that if she has your support, she’ll think of every possible way to make us separate! I trusted you. That’s why I came here with you! Why don’t you understand? You have to be with me. You can’t stand on someone else’s side…”

After Shen Zhoudu finished speaking, he bit his lower lip with all his strength to stop his emotions from exploding further. He moved one step forward, lowered his head, and buried his face in the hollow of Meng Weiyu’s shoulder.

“Why don’t you understand? For you and me to reach this point today, it was too difficult.” And the reason we reached today was because our feelings for each other were indelible and unwavering. “How can you decide to abandon me only now?”

“If you don’t say it, how would I know?” Meng Weiyu said coldly. “You never tell me what twenty-seven-year-old me is like, and you don’t tell me whether there are any difficulties between us. When I ask you, you only say that you’ll handle everything well. Since that’s the case, how would I know what I should do?”

Shen Zhoudu grabbed Meng Weiyu’s shoulders, hiding his own face, and gently shook his body.

You’re only seventeen. You shouldn’t have to bear anything in the first place.

After you woke up, you couldn’t even accept the most basic situation. How could I be at ease telling you the things that troubled him?

Shen Zhoudu had many thoughts in his heart. It could be said that he had a new thought every second.

But in order to let Meng Weiyu live carefree, he could not say a single word.

“Forget it.” Of a thousand words and ten thousand sentences, in the end, only two words could be said. “If you want to discuss our divorce with Grandmother, then go. I’m leaving.”

Shen Zhoudu released the hands gripping Meng Weiyu’s shoulders and turned sideways, walking toward the door.

Even if Yan Xiangxiang had heaven-reaching abilities, she could not make him and Meng Weiyu separate. Too naive. Let them cause whatever trouble they wanted. Shen Zhoudu knew clearly that compared to a simple marriage relationship, he and Meng Weiyu had made legal transactions that fundamentally could not be easily divided. Let them make trouble. In the end, they would all give up.

Shen Zhoudu placed his hand on the doorknob, preparing to open the door.

“Wu…”

Behind him came the sound of sobbing.

Shen Zhoudu froze, then quickly turned his head.

Meng Weiyu was soaked all over. His silver-gray hair kept dripping water, and his clothes and pants were also wet and clinging to his body. He looked like a little cat drenched by the rain, turning around under the eaves in confusion, frightened by the heavy rain and eroded by the feeling of having nowhere to return.

He looked at Shen Zhoudu. His heart felt as if it had been seized by a large hand, leaving him unable to breathe. The organs inside him hurt so much that his head felt like it would explode.

Before Meng Weiyu could figure out whether this unfamiliar feeling came from his brain or his heart, he could not help bursting into loud sobs.

He cried terribly. Tears poured down all at once. He bit his mouth tightly, trying to stop the sound, but it had little effect. In the end, he let out whimpers like a small animal.

“Wu…” Meng Weiyu realized he could not stop the boiling emotions from erupting. In the end, he chose to squat down all at once, wanting to bury his face.

He cried so hard it felt like his heart and lungs were tearing apart. His body was trembling.

Shen Zhoudu panicked. With a flustered posture, he ran in front of him, reached out, and picked him up.

“Waa!!!” Meng Weiyu was angered to tears by him. He hugged Shen Zhoudu’s waist tightly, shouted into the air, and his tears became even more unstoppable.

You want to divorce me. You actually dare agree to divorce me!

“Xiao Yu, Xiao Yu, don’t cry.” Shen Zhoudu anxiously held the back of his head with one hand and wrapped the other around his waist to stop his weak body from sliding down.

“You want to divorce me!” Meng Weiyu had heard clearly.

“I don’t want to divorce you!” Shen Zhoudu anxiously refuted him.

“You want to divorce me!” Meng Weiyu could not figure out where his grievance came from. When he thought that Shen Zhoudu wanted to separate from him, he was filled with grief and rage, wishing he could cry his tears dry.

“I won’t divorce Xiao Yu. I won’t.” Shen Zhoudu, who had just finished showering and still carried the scent of body wash, tightly hugged Meng Weiyu, who had been drenched by the rain and was crying messily. He allowed Meng Weiyu’s tears and the dirty water droplets from the sky to stain him black as well. He held Meng Weiyu tightly, with so much strength it was as if he wanted to embed their bodies into each other and never separate again.

“You’re too awful…” Meng Weiyu could not hear what Shen Zhoudu was saying at all. The strength in his body was drained away, and he was about to fall to the floor. “You’re too awful! I won’t let you off…”

“Boom!”

A shocking clap of thunder sounded in the sky.

Meng Weiyu’s eyes went blank. He had already been crying so hard he was nearly out of breath, and this time, his breathing truly stopped for a moment.

His body fell backward and was caught by Shen Zhoudu, so he did not fall down.

Some memories suddenly appeared in his mind. Meng Weiyu suddenly remembered that once, on the same kind of stormy day, he had cried as he walked step by step toward the promised place, and then Shen Zhoudu, who had rushed over, hugged him tightly.

This was the newest memory he had gained.

That year, Meng Weiyu was twenty years old.

Shen Zhoudu truly had not lied.

At that time, the two of them were the best friends in the world.